An instability of unitary quantum dynamics

Instabilities of equilibrium quantum mechanics are common and well-understood. They are manifested for example in phase transitions, where a quantum system becomes so sensitive to perturbations that a symmetry can be spontaneously broken. Here, we consider the possibility that the time evolution gov...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of physics. Conference series Vol. 626; no. 1; pp. 12012 - 12022
Main Author van Wezel, Jasper
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Bristol IOP Publishing 03.07.2015
Subjects
Dynamic stability
Perturbation
Phase transitions
Physics
Quantum mechanics
Quantum theory
Sensitivity
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ISSN1742-6588
1742-6596
1742-6596
DOI10.1088/1742-6596/626/1/012012

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Summary:Instabilities of equilibrium quantum mechanics are common and well-understood. They are manifested for example in phase transitions, where a quantum system becomes so sensitive to perturbations that a symmetry can be spontaneously broken. Here, we consider the possibility that the time evolution governing quantum dynamics may be similarly subject to an instability, at which its unitarity spontaneously breaks down owing to an extreme sensitivity towards perturbations. We find that indeed such an instability exists, and we explore its immediate consequences. Interpretations of the results both in terms of extreme sensitivity to the influence of environmental degrees of freedom, and in terms of a possible fundamental violation of unitarity are discussed.
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ISSN:1742-6588
1742-6596
1742-6596
DOI:10.1088/1742-6596/626/1/012012